Arrest Warrants

Submitted by admin on Wed, 03/14/2012 - 16:49

Arrest Warrants in California

Having a warrant in your name can take its toll on your overall personal life. Not only do you spend time avoiding it, your record would show that you are a fugitive of the law. Arrest warrants in California are especially troublesome and the following is a short explanation of what they are and how they are to be managed.

When an individual has committed a crime in California, there are two ways they can be arrested: the first is through catching the crime and the criminal red-handed or through an arrest warrant.

An arrest warrant is a lawful order issued by an officer when a crime is committed outside of their realm of presence. In order for the arrest warrant is to be issued, there must be proof of probably cause. Probable cause is the legal standard which means that there are sufficient facts that lead a man to a reasonable suspicion that a crime has been committed. The order would be issued by a judge after submission by the district attorney of facts that a crime has been committed and that the individual to be arrested had committed the crime.

The arrest warrant has the effect of ordering law enforcement officers to arrest and detain the person so named in the arrest warrant. The order would have a defined period and would only be effective within a particular jurisdiction. Once the period lapses or the individual is arrested and detained, the law enforcement officer serving the warrant would need to return the warrant and state therein its service or lapse.

The arrest warrant can be served either for a felony or misdemeanor offense. Also, once an arrest warrant has been issued, your lawyer can move to recall the warrant through a petition stating that there have been factual errors in the resolution for the issuance of the arrest warrant. If the arrest warrant is served, once arrested, the arrested individual can seek bail reduction or be released on recognizance pending the time of trial where accused can answer to the criminal charges.